They do come with velour earpads (the SRH-940). There is a sonic difference between the SRH-940 and the SRH-840. I even put SRH-840 pads on the SRH-940 (I have an extra set) to see if that would constitute the difference, and the answer to that was no. The SRH-940 unit I have is pre-production, so I'm not sure if the final production is different, either physically or in terms of sonics. The pre-production SRH-940 I have here has a more revealing, more extended, more present treble than the SRH-840--there are other differences, but that's the first thing most will hear when comparing the two.

I'll say more about the SRH-940 soon, including photos of the pre-production unit I've got (if that's okay to do, which I'll clear first).

How do the SRH940 compare to the SRH840 in size? I look foward to your detailed impressions(if you're allowed to) with great interest!

i love my shure srh750dj headphones and i just bought them. i have no plans to upgrade anytime soon considering the dj headphones are probably going to sound very similar or the same. but i might want to look into getting the srh940 headphones. as they seem like a good update to the srh840 headphones.

They look almost identical to the 840s, except in silver. The improved headband and velour pads will do a lot to improve the comfort compared to the 840s IMO... sound-wise the only improvement to the 840s I could see happening would be better imaging, less treble roll-off and perhaps a slight flattening of the bass response (since these are supposed to be reference phones).

Wonder if they'll offer velour pads for the 840s?

Who says the 840 has treble roll-off and a bass hump? If more treble is the upgrade, then I worry it's just an attempt to enhance the sense of detail with exaggerated treble like all the other new "high-res" but soul free headphones. We'll see though...

Looks like Shure took the most common complaints (comfort, size of cups, sweaty pleather) and tried to correct them. I was wondering when Shure would expand the line, as the 440 and 840 have been pretty successful, if their popularity on Head-Fi is any indication.

Shure needs to curve the headbands more. On maximum extension, the SRH840 cannot cover both my earlobes at the same time because the headband is too flat.

It's interesting. Mid-to-high tier headphones don't seem to have much headband extension. I use my HD215 (cheap closed phones) at some 40% extension and wonder who the heck is going to use that full extension. Germans? Giant Germans?